in transition {dining room edition}

Here is my birthday present! My mother in law finished her up a few days ago, and she sits tall and proud against an expansive wall in the dining room. It needed her. Over the summer I found an idea online that I liked, using a large, old barbershop countertop/mirror that hung on the wall, but Ruth wasn't too keen on the idea. I agreed to wait awhile to see if my desires would evolve, especially since I also liked the idea of a leggy piece of furniture. I was tired of something that rested on the ground; of that I was sure.

Not too long ago she pulled me into her wood shop and showed me what she had been up to! I about fell over with excitement! Minus the drawers, she made the entire bottom half from scratch. You know how there are scratch golfers? Well she's a scratch woodworker. Amazing! She fiddled with quite a few things for the top portion, as well, and made sure that the two pieces looked like they belonged together. The mirror was cut down from an old piece we had lying around here from when we moved in. Oh, and everything else was FREE- can't beat that.

This thing is a beast. Yet beautiful. :)

I love the hinges- adds a touch of femininity to the massive structure

The other recent project was moving the old dining room table out, and bringing this one in. I mentioned earlier that this is going to tide us over until we decide on what we want to build/buy. After a little cleaning and sanding, we slapped some sealer on it and voila- it looks awesome and just the right amount of weathered.

Molding around the sliding doors needs to be finished, and then curtains can be hung. We may opt for french doors when we eventually get around to replacing windows. These let in a lot of light, which is nice cause the kitchen only has a small window. Off to the right of the picture where the beaded board stops (behind the 'simplify' sign) is where the subway tile back splash will begin. That's another project, but I am getting excited about it since I am thinking I may have decided on what type of countertops I want! Big decision, right? :)

The dining room light was also made by Ruth. It was a really great project, since the inspiration came from Restoration Hardware's Burlap Dome Pendant, which retails for $750.

Pretty amazingly comparable, right?

Especially considering this is what it came from- this scalloped shape,

in this vibrant purple color- only wicker instead of cloth.

I love the wrapped edges! It is hanging by a metal 'single tree'. We grabbed it out of Jeff's grandparent's barn, and Grandpa told us that a single tree was used to help attach a horse to the carriage, back in the day. Pretty cool find, eh?

The canvas is blank. All I need is a little time to do a bit of shopping and decorate! Apparently Ikea has it out for me; my sister was up there and asked if she could pick anything up for me, but lo and behold, I got skunked after she tried to find everything on my list, but to no avail.

So... the canvas is still blank. And until I find some time, it just might have to stay this way! But she sure is pretty all dressed in white.




**I linked up to A2Z**